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A recent report determined that although only three percent of drivers on Maryland highways equipped their vehicles with radar detectors, thirty-three percent of all vehicles ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were equipped with them. Clearly, drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who do not.

The conclusion drawn above depends on which of the following assumptions?


(A) Drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are less likely to be ticketed for exceeding the speed limit than are drivers who do not.
-this is an odd assumption that just goes in the opposite direction of the passage …weakens the argument…the conclusion is predicated on this idea that the vehicles ticketed more often carried the detectors

(B) Drivers who are ticketed for exceeding the speed limit are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who are not ticketed.
Correct! The conclusion would be ruined if this were not true…

(C) The number of vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit was greater than the number of vehicles that were equipped with radar detectors.
-this just tells us something that we already know: “thirty-three percent of all vehicles ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were equipped with them”…clearly that suggests that there was a higher # of vehicles that were caught speeding relative to the number of those caught with a detector

(D) Many of the vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report.
-this weakens the argument…double…triple counting in play..
-e.g. Suppose the report had 10 incidents but one guy was responsible for half of those incidents …we can’t then conclude that drivers in general are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly…maybe it was just that one person

(E) Drivers on Maryland highways exceeded the speed limit more often than did drivers on other state highways not covered in the report.
-irrelevant comparison

Please give me a kudos if you like my reasoning.
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TommyWallach
Hey All,

I can explain that difference! Let's take this from the top.

A recent report determined that although only three percent of drivers on Maryland highways equipped their vehicles with radar detectors, thirty-three percent of all vehicles ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were equipped with them. Clearly, drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who do not.

Conclusion: Driver with radar exceed the speed limit more than those with no radar.
Premise: 3% of drivers have radar. 33% of ticketed vehicles have them.
Assumption: Something else about the radar doesn't make you more likely to get ticketed. Speed = tickets.

The conclusion drawn above depends on which of the following assumptions?
(A) Drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are less likely to be ticketed for exceeding the speed limit than are drivers who do not.
PROBLEM: This is the opposite of what we want. The people with radar are clearly getting tickets MORE often than those who do not.

(B) Drivers who are ticketed for exceeding the speed limit are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who are not ticketed.
ANSWER: This is dangerous, because most people ASSUME this already (if you get tickets more, it's because you're speeding more). But remember this is the GMAT, we cannot assume this. We can't jump from "more tickets" to "more speeding", as much as our logic nodes may want it.

(C) The number of vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit was greater than the number of vehicles that were equipped with radar detectors.
PROBLEM: We don't need to assume this to make our conclusion. Try negating it, and seeing if that destroys the conclusion (this is a way to test correct assumptions). "The number of vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit was NOT greater than the number of vehicles that were equipped with radar detectors." So what? It could still be true that people with radar are speeding more.

(D) Many of the vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report.
PROBLEM: Even if this might work, it's the OPPOSITE of what we'd want. We'd want to assume that these people were only ticketed ONCE, because if the same person was ticketed multiple times, he might only be one person, in which case the conclusion doesn't work. But the negation of this is: "Many of the vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were NOT ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report." That HELPS the argument, see? Now we can possibly infer that there are MORE PEOPLE with radar speeding, because there are no duplicates.

(E) Drivers on Maryland highways exceeded the speed limit more often than did drivers on other state highways not covered in the report.
PROBLEM: Who cares about stuff outside of Maryland?

Hope that helps!

-t

Hello Experts,

I got this one incorrect as in my mind I was thinking the below, although the statement didn't actually say that.
However, can you confirm if the statement had been as below, would I be right in choosing this one?
Please help.


Many of the vehicles [b]with radar detectors
that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report.[/b]
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A recent report determined that although only three percent of drivers on Maryland highways equipped their vehicles with radar detectors, thirty-three percent of all vehicles ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were equipped with them. Clearly, drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who do not.

The conclusion drawn above depends on which of the following assumptions?

Solution: This question just reminds me how important it is to read carefully and attentively each and every word. The overall argument and conclusion are pretty straightforward. But this one word changes the argument from a simple occurrence to a habit or a trait. "Clearly, drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who do not." Pay attention to the word "regularly". The evidence or premise just mentions a report and its observation. But the report doesn't mention for how long were the drivers under observation. Were the Maryland highways and their drivers randomly observed for a few days and then observations drawn? or Were they under observation for a long period of duration and then observations drawn? Now, why is this important? Because the conclusion says "regularly". You will not say you play basketball regularly if you just played for the last two days. "Regularly" emphasizes a habit, a trait, a general occurrence and we need some consistent occurrences for a period of duration for an occurrence to be called a regular occurrence.
Also, Always remember that the assumption in a sense is true to the premise and also strengthens the conclusion. Does it necessarily have to strengthen the conclusion? No. But it does not weaken it also.

(A) Drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are less likely to be ticketed for exceeding the speed limit than are drivers who do not.:" This just goes opposite to the premise. But we don't know who these drivers are? Are they the same drivers who were reported in the argument or this statement is just stating drivers in general? Although the conclusion draws a statement about drivers in general, we cannot drive or support the conclusion with the given answer option.

(B) Drivers who are ticketed for exceeding the speed limit are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who are not ticketed.: While this is word-to-word directly supporting the conclusion, It can make a reader anxious or skeptical. Can an answer be so obvious? Well, what I can tell you is obvious is that GMAT question makers are some tricky folks. It's like they read Art of War to write some of these questions. Even if we cannot certainly say this is right or are a bit skeptical, it's alright. Keep this answer in check and move on to eliminate others.

(C) The number of vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit was greater than the number of vehicles that were equipped with radar detectors.: This is clearly inconsequential. You can take numbers and try them out. It does not have any effect on the conclusion. Even if "The number of vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit was not greater than the number of vehicles that were equipped with radar detectors" what of it. How does it affect the conclusion?

(D) Many of the vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report.: Now, remember the statement I have mentioned above about how the assumption does not weaken the conclusion, this is where we can apply it. If the given answer option is true then the report is not fair to draw the conclusion. If the drivers were ticketed more than once, then it can totally change the conclusions drawn. The force of evidence weakens, we cannot draw the conclusion with credibility now. The negation of the assumption must weaken or destroy the conclusion but the non-negated assumption itself must not weaken or destroy the conclusion.

(E) Drivers on Maryland highways exceeded the speed limit more often than did drivers on other state highways not covered in the report.: This is similar to option D. Because the report was on Maryland drivers but the conclusion is more general, the conclusion losses some credibility if the condition of Maryland highways is different from other highways. Also, in the conclusion, our focus is more on drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors. So, we need an assumption that sheds more light on that.
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rishabhaditya
TommyWallach
Hey All,

I can explain that difference! Let's take this from the top.

A recent report determined that although only three percent of drivers on Maryland highways equipped their vehicles with radar detectors, thirty-three percent of all vehicles ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were equipped with them. Clearly, drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who do not.

Conclusion: Driver with radar exceed the speed limit more than those with no radar.
Premise: 3% of drivers have radar. 33% of ticketed vehicles have them.
Assumption: Something else about the radar doesn't make you more likely to get ticketed. Speed = tickets.

The conclusion drawn above depends on which of the following assumptions?
(A) Drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are less likely to be ticketed for exceeding the speed limit than are drivers who do not.
PROBLEM: This is the opposite of what we want. The people with radar are clearly getting tickets MORE often than those who do not.

(B) Drivers who are ticketed for exceeding the speed limit are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who are not ticketed.
ANSWER: This is dangerous, because most people ASSUME this already (if you get tickets more, it's because you're speeding more). But remember this is the GMAT, we cannot assume this. We can't jump from "more tickets" to "more speeding", as much as our logic nodes may want it.

(C) The number of vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit was greater than the number of vehicles that were equipped with radar detectors.
PROBLEM: We don't need to assume this to make our conclusion. Try negating it, and seeing if that destroys the conclusion (this is a way to test correct assumptions). "The number of vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit was NOT greater than the number of vehicles that were equipped with radar detectors." So what? It could still be true that people with radar are speeding more.

(D) Many of the vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report.
PROBLEM: Even if this might work, it's the OPPOSITE of what we'd want. We'd want to assume that these people were only ticketed ONCE, because if the same person was ticketed multiple times, he might only be one person, in which case the conclusion doesn't work. But the negation of this is: "Many of the vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were NOT ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report." That HELPS the argument, see? Now we can possibly infer that there are MORE PEOPLE with radar speeding, because there are no duplicates.

(E) Drivers on Maryland highways exceeded the speed limit more often than did drivers on other state highways not covered in the report.
PROBLEM: Who cares about stuff outside of Maryland?

Hope that helps!

-t

Hello Experts,

I got this one incorrect as in my mind I was thinking the below, although the statement didn't actually say that.
However, can you confirm if the statement had been as below, would I be right in choosing this one?
Please help.


Many of the vehicles [b]with radar detectors
that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report.[/b]

Hi rishabhaditya
I am not an expert but hope I can help you with this. If I am understanding your question right. Your statement:

"Many of the vehicles with radar detectors that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report."

This statement actually weakens the conclusion because it points to a flaw in the report. See, the author is drawing a conclusion from the report, that if all things considered equal, drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who do not. But your statement is pointing to something that shows that the conditions are not equal. It's similar to option D, it decreases the force of the evidence and makes the conclusion lose some credibility. If we want to compare two things and draw a general conclusion we need to keep things fair. If Many of the vehicles with radar detectors that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report , then it just explains why the report showed that thirty-three percent of all vehicles ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were equipped with radar detectors and that this is not a general trend. I hope this helps.
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Got it correct.
A D E are obviously wrong.
D E go beyond the scope of the text.
Comes to B and C.
C is an inference answer ie restating the conclusion
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Hi,

let y be the amount of vehicles ticketed, and x = (drivers with no radar + the amount of drivers with radar) = total drivers. We assume that each vehicle belongs to one driver (this is a realistic assumption to make). We get:

(1) Likelihood to exceed speed limit with radar: Driver caught who have a radar / total drivers with radar = (1/3*y)/(0.03x)= (1/0.09)*(y/x)
(2) Likelihood ... without radar: ... = (2/3*y)/(0.97x)= (2/(3*0.97))*(y/x)

When comparing both terms, we see that (1) will always be greater than (2). Let's negate (B):

Drivers who are ticketed for exceeding the speed limited are less than or equally likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than drivers who are not ticketed.
Combine this with the fact that the proportion of those who have a radar and got a ticket is greater than the proportion of those who don't have a radar and got a ticket. This means that a smaller proportion of those who have a radar is NOT ticketed when compared to the proportion of those who DON'T have a radar and are NOT ticketed. Since there are more people who don't have a radar, we can't conclude that people who have a radar are more likely to exceed speed limits regularly
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GMATNinja
Quote:
A recent report determined that although only 3 percent of drivers on Maryland highways equipped their vehicles with radar detectors, 33 percent of all vehicles ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were equipped with them. Clearly, drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who do not.

The conclusion drawn above depends on which of the following assumptions?
Well, if the conclusion is mentioned in the question itself, then I guess we should start by making sure we're 100% clear about the language in the conclusion:

    "...drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who do not."

Great. And since this is a runty little two-sentence passage, the evidence to support the conclusion is pretty straightforward:

    "...although only 3 percent of drivers on Maryland highways equipped their vehicles with radar detectors, 33 percent of all vehicles ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were equipped with them."

A few details of language jump out at me in this passage, though. For starters, the conclusion emphasizes that drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are more likely to actually exceed the speed limit regularly than drivers who do not. And it's interesting to me that the evidence focuses on the percentage of ticketed vehicles that were equipped with radar detectors.

So if we're looking for an assumption, then we probably will need something that connects the conclusion (i.e., that drivers with radar detectors actually exceed the speed limit regularly) with the evidence about speeding tickets. And as always, you can think of an assumption as something that not only strengthens or reinforces the conclusion, but also is necessary to draw that conclusion.

Quote:
(A) Drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are less likely to be ticketed for exceeding the speed limit than are drivers who do not.
(A) strengthens the conclusion: if drivers with the radar detectors are LESS likely to be ticketed than drivers without them, then the drivers with radar detectors must exceed the speed limit even MORE often than it initially seemed based on the argument.

Trouble is, the question isn't asking us to strengthen the argument; it's asking us to identify a necessary assumption. And we don't need to assume that drivers with radar detectors are less likely to be ticketed than other drivers. After all, 33% of ticketed vehicles have radar detectors, while only 3% of all vehicles have radar detectors, so if vehicles with radar detectors are just equally likely to receive tickets when they exceed the speed limit, the conclusion could still hold. Heck, drivers with radar detectors could even be somewhat more likely to receive tickets -- and as long as the disparity isn't huge, the conclusion could still hold.

So we certainly don't need to assume that vehicles with radars are LESS likely to receive tickets. (A) is out.

Quote:
(B) Drivers who are ticketed for exceeding speed limit are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who are not ticketed.
This answer choice seems so lame and obvious -- of course you're more likely to exceed the speed limit if you receive more speeding tickets, right? -- that I kind of want to ignore it completely. But that would be a bad thing to do.

Let's come back to the argument: the conclusion says that people with radar detectors ACTUALLY exceed the speed limit more often than drivers without them, but the evidence in the passage only mentions the fact that vehicles with radar detectors receive a disproportionate percentage of TICKETS for speeding. So we absolutely do need to assume that drivers who receive tickets are more likely to actually exceed the speed limit. Otherwise, there's no connection whatsoever between the evidence and the conclusion.

So let's keep (B).

Quote:
(C) The number of vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding speed limit was greater than the number of vehicles that were equipped with the radar detectors.
There's no reason why we would need to assume this in order to draw the conclusion. We already know that 3% of drivers equipped their vehicles with radar detectors, and it doesn't really matter whether 6% of all vehicles or 2% of all vehicles receive speeding tickets: either way, it wouldn't change the fact (stated in the passage!) that vehicles with radar detectors receive a disproportionate percentage of those tickets. And more importantly, it wouldn't help us figure out whether drivers with radar detectors are more likely to actually exceed the speed limit.

So (C) is gone.

Quote:
(D) Many of the vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report.
(D) is kind of interesting, but it doesn't actually help us draw the conclusion.

For starters, we don't know which vehicles were ticketed more than once: if the vehicles with radar detectors were more likely to receive multiple tickets, then it would reinforce the idea that vehicles with radar detectors receive TONS of tickets. But it could also go in the other direction: if vehicles WITHOUT radar detectors were more likely to receive multiple tickets, then it would weaken the force of the evidence in the passage, and undermine the conclusion. For that reason alone, we could ditch (D).

And just as importantly: remember that the conclusion discusses the likelihood that drivers actually exceed the speed limit. (D) doesn't help us reinforce this conclusion at all, because it just tells us something about the number of tickets received for speeding.

So we can eliminate (D), too.

Quote:
(E) Drivers on Maryland highways exceed the speed limit more often than drivers on other state highways not covered in the report.
Who gives a crap? The entire scope of the passage is about drivers in Maryland, and the conclusion is concerned with differences in behavior between drivers with and without radar detectors in Maryland. Comparing Maryland drivers to non-Maryland drivers can't possibly have any impact whatsoever on the conclusion.

So we can eliminate (E), and (B) is the best answer.

Thanks, I ended up choosing option A and got this wrong.

I did not fully comprehend what B meant. To me B meant, that the ticketing event is itself driving speeding behaviour, meaning when I get a ticket I start speeding more and that did not make sense.....weird but not sure how I got that in my head, lol. So B's language was not very clear to me and it was confusing.

Thanks for your solution. I think it made my understanding of the question a little better.
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­I think the reason for why (A) is incorrect is what GMAT Ninja posted. And not because it is opposite of what's happening like few others posted.
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A recent report determined that although only three percent of drivers on Maryland highways equipped their vehicles with radar detectors, thirty-three percent of all vehicles ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were equipped with them. Clearly, drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who do not.

The conclusion drawn above depends on which of the following assumptions?


(A) Drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are less likely to be ticketed for exceeding the speed limit than are drivers who do not.

(B) Drivers who are ticketed for exceeding the speed limit are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who are not ticketed.

(C) The number of vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit was greater than the number of vehicles that were equipped with radar detectors.

(D) Many of the vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report.

(E) Drivers on Maryland highways exceeded the speed limit more often than did drivers on other state highways not covered in the report.

PREMISE 1 : 3% of Vehicle have RADAR DETECTOR .
PREMISE 2: 33% of TICKETED VEHICLE have RADAR DETECTOR .
CNCLUSION: drivers who equip their vehicles with RADAR DETECTOR are more likely to exceed the speed limit REGULARLY (MEANING IN THERE NATURE THEY ARE SPEEDY ) than are drivers who do not.
THE GAP IS EASILY VISIBLE : ANSWER SHOULD FILL THE GAP WHICH IS THE RELATION BETWEEN REGULAR SPEEDINESS AND TICKETED VEHICLE
Quote:
(A) Drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are less likely to be ticketed for exceeding the speed limit than are drivers who do not.RADAR DETECTORS AND TICKETING RELATION IS NOT WHAT WE WANT

(B) Drivers who are ticketed for exceeding the speed limit are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who are not ticketed. PERFECT! TICKETING AND REGULAR SPEEDINESS ARE RELATED HERE

(C) The number of vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit was greater than the number of vehicles that were equipped with radar detectors. TICKETING AND RADAR DETECTORS' RELATION WE DONT WANT

(D) Many of the vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report. NO RELATION ESTABLISH BETWEEN CONCERNED VARIABLE .

(E) Drivers on Maryland highways exceeded the speed limit more often than did drivers on other state highways not covered in the report.NO RELATION ESTABLISH BETWEEN THE CONCERNED VARIABLES
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i am confused with B & C ,

Since 3% of drivers are equipped with radars and 33% of them are ticketed
but concluded statating 3% will repeat the same mistake
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i am confused with B & C ,

Since 3% of drivers are equipped with radars and 33% of them are ticketed

but concluded statating 3% will repeat the same mistake
We attempted to explain each of the answer choices in this post: https://gmatclub.com/forum/a-recent-report-determined-that-although-only-3-percent-of-drivers-on-186145.html#p2002514. Check it out, and let us know if you have any follow-up questions.
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Premise - A recent report determined that although only three percent of drivers on Maryland highways equipped their vehicles with radar detectors, thirty-three percent of all vehicles ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were equipped with them.

Conclusion - Clearly, drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who do not.

Argument Breakdown - Let’s say there are 200 drivers on the streets of Maryland, out of these 6 people have radar detectors. These people represent 33% of people of all vehicles ticketed for exceeding the speed limit. Based on this the author of the argument concludes that these 6 people regularly exceed the speed limit. This is very important as the author has concluded these are repeat offenders who constantly violate the speed limit.

Gap Analysis -

1) These 6 people might have only offended the speed limit once, consequently the report could have studied these offenders on only one single day.

The conclusion drawn above depends on which of the following assumptions?


(A) Drivers who equip their vehicles with radar detectors are less likely to be ticketed for exceeding the speed limit than are drivers who do not.

- Negation strengthens the argument as Radar detector drivers would be more likely to exceed the speed limit.

(B) Drivers who are ticketed for exceeding the speed limit are more likely to exceed the speed limit regularly than are drivers who are not ticketed.

- The word regularly makes this option correct as negation would say that the Radar detector drivers aren’t more likely to exceed the speed limit again destroying the argument

(C) The number of vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit was greater than the number of vehicles that were equipped with radar detectors.

- Mostly irrelevant as this has zero impact on the argument even with the negation. This is a very clunky option, which makes me think this is why this question was discontinued.

(D) Many of the vehicles that were ticketed for exceeding the speed limit were ticketed more than once in the time period covered by the report.

- Interesting option as this says that a lot of vehicles were ticketed more than once in the time period, but ultimately irrelevant as many means more than 50 percent and using the numbers above, these many drivers could be the 10 people who weren’t equipped with Radar detectors.

(E) Drivers on Maryland highways exceeded the speed limit more often than did drivers on other state highways not covered in the report.

- Irrelevant we aren’t concerned with comparison of rate of traffic violation between two states
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What the argument says:

Only 3% of drivers have radar detectors.
But 33% of the vehicles that got speeding tickets had radar detectors.
So, the conclusion is:
Drivers with radar detectors are more likely to speed regularly than those without.


What is the question asking?
It’s asking:
What assumption must be true for this conclusion to make sense?
An assumption is something that must be true to hold the argument.

Let’s look at the answer choices one by one:
(A) Says radar detector users are less likely to be ticketed.

But the argument says they are ticketed more often. So this goes against the argument.
Eliminate
(B) Says:
People who get tickets are more likely to speed regularly than those who don’t get tickets.
This makes sense
The argument connects getting ticketed with regular speeding.
So if ticketed drivers are regular speeders, and radar detector users are often ticketed,
then radar detector users must be regular speeders.
Hold
(C) Talks about the number of ticketed vehicles vs radar detector vehicles.
This is just about numbers, not behavior. Doesn’t help the argument.
Eliminate
(D) Says many vehicles were ticketed more than once.
Interesting, but not necessary for the conclusion.
Eliminate
(E) Talks about other states.
The argument is only about Maryland, so this is irrelevant.
Eliminate

So Correct Answer is (B)

Because the argument assumes:

Getting ticketed means you speed regularly.

Without this assumption, the conclusion doesn’t hold.
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